EYE ON THE OPPOSITION | Accrington Stanley (H)

EYE ON THE OPPOSITION | Accrington Stanley (H)

Vale are looking to get back to winning ways on Tuesday night as Accrington Stanley play the role of our opposition at Vale Park.

The visitors are currently down in 23rd position in the league table, however, they have a number of games in hand over their rivals.

Stanley come into this one off the back of a 3-0 defeat at home to Lincoln City on Saturday, and they were forced to finish that match with 10 men after Harry Perritt was sent his marching orders.

Unfortunately, the Valiants also fell to a 3-0 defeat at the weekend, with Gareth Ainsworth’s Wycombe Wanderers taking all the points away from Vale Park.

The result left us in 14th place on 36 points, but with no other sides in League One action on Tuesday, it is a perfect chance for Vale to leap back up the table.

Before the two sides face off at Vale Park on Tuesday night, here is what you need to know about the Lancashire side.

ONE TO WATCH: Sean McConville

There was only ever one man we could pick for this section, and that’s Mr.Stanley himself, Sean McConville.

Currently, into his second spell at the club, McConville has made over 400 appearances for the Owd Reds’, netting 70 goals and providing 93 assists in the process.

Born in Liverpool, Accrington’s number 11 started his career at non-league Skelmersdale United, before making the move to Stanley in 2009.

McConville's first stint lasted two years, in which he scored 14 goals in just under 90 appearances in Lancashire.

Spells at Stockport County, Rochdale, Barrow, Stalybridge Celtic, and Chester then followed for the midfielder before he returned to his spiritual home in 2015.

Since returning to Accrington, McConville has enjoyed a lot of success, including playing a major part in the team that clinched the Sky Bet League Two title in 2018.

The left-sided midfielder still plays a pivotal role in John Coleman’s team today, and so far, this season he has notched up a tally of four goals and two assists in the league.

THE MAN AT THE HELM: John Coleman

Like McConville, Stanley boss John Coleman is a club legend after spending a total of 21 years at the club over two spells.

Before his time as a manager, Coleman was once a player that spent most of his career in the northwest of England with the likes of Southport and Morecambe.

Coleman made the jump to coaching in 1997 as player manager of Ashton United where he enjoyed two years of his career.

In 1999, the 60-year-old’s first stint at the helm of Accrington Stanley began, and that was the start of a very successful time at the club.

His first spell lasted 12 and a half years and, in that time, Coleman oversaw multiple promotions, including guiding them into the football league in 2006.

In 2012 Coleman left the Owd Reds for Rochdale, but unfortunately for him, his time in Greater Manchester ended after a year.

Southport and Sligo Rovers were the next two destinations for Coleman, but they never seemed like the right fit and he returned to Stanley in September 2014.

Now over eight years into his second tenure at the club, Coleman has overseen promotion to League One as champions after conquering the fourth tier in 2018.

HEAD-TO-HEAD LAST FIVE:

 

Vale wins: 2

Draws: 0

Accrington wins: 3

When we collide with Accrington there are always goals, with the two sides racking up a total of 19 goals in their last five fixtures.

Unfortunately, it’s Stanley that have the better of our recent record, but it is Vale that won our last clash, running out 5-1 winner in the first round of last season’s FA Cup.